Partnership With Maurer Benefits Law Students

by Richard Paige • July 1, 2014
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Wabash College and the Indiana University Maurer School of Law have entered into a memorandum of understanding establishing a scholarship and mentoring program for students interested in pursuing legal education.

Each year, the Wabash Law Scholars Program will offer at least two Wabash College graduates admitted to the Maurer School of Law a scholarship amounting to about 50 percent of annual tuition, along with access to a formal mentoring program. The scholarship will reduce the cost of law school tuition over three years by $45,000 to $75,000, depending on the student’s residency and other factors.

"Wabash has a proud tradition of sending its graduates to the IU Maurer School of Law, and this new partnership will build on that long history," said Wabash College President Gregory D. Hess. "This program provides critical scholarship funds for Wabash men, while the mentoring opportunities will match our graduates with outstanding lawyers and teachers. We are very excited about the ways in which this will further strengthen our pre-law program at Wabash."

"A liberal arts degree from a school like Wabash is excellent preparation for the study and practice of law," said Austen L. Parrish, dean and the James H. Rudy Professor of Law at the Maurer School of Law. "Many of our most distinguished alumni are also Wabash graduates, and we are delighted to join forces with this outstanding school."

"This scholarship agreement provides a special opportunity for generations of future Wabash students and builds on a longstanding relationship between Indiana Law and Wabash," said Gary A. Phillips, Wabash College professor and former dean of the college. "The law school will be strengthened by attracting some of our best and brightest students, and Wabash graduates will be challenged to do their best work in order to qualify for the generous scholarship support. Everyone benefits, including Wabash students for whom the financial burden of law school loans will be significantly reduced."

"My Wabash and Maurer degrees have been a tremendous benefit to me in my career," said Gregory A. Castanias ‘87, a partner and chair of the Federal Circuit practice in the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm Jones Day. "Wabash gave me the broad insights and critical thinking that come with a liberal arts education, and Maurer provided me with the world-class legal education that made it possible to become an appellate and intellectual property lawyer. I’m delighted that both of my alma maters have established this program."

Each year, Wabash will nominate two students or alumni for admission to the law school, provided the applicants meet the criteria for admission and the LSAT and cumulative grade-point-average requirements. No applicant will be named a Wabash Law Scholar without first being nominated by Wabash, and the college will establish nomination procedures. Other indications of future success, such as prior academic performance, letters of recommendation, past professional and other experience and desire to study at the law school, also will be considered.

Wabash will nominate current students or alumni for the program beginning with the law school’s fall 2014 entering class.